This article proposes an epistemological reflection on the multidisciplinary/interdisciplinary fields of Childhood and Children’s Rights Studies. The theoretical backgrounds underlying the claims for interactions between disciplines in these specific fields are investigated, exploring their multidisciplinary or interdisciplinary nature(s). Between specificities, similarities, and complementarities, possibilities of dialogue and integration within and beyond the fields are explored, to identify the conditions for interdisciplinary work on the complex issues of childhood, children, and their rights.
In this special issue, we explore child rights governance as the intersection between the study of governance and the study of children, childhood, and children’s rights. Our introduction puts forward a set of theoretical points of departure for the study of child rights governance, engaging with scholarship on human rights, international relations, history, and governance. It links the individual contributions to this special issue with four central dimensions of child rights governance, namely: temporality, spatiality, subjectivity, and normativity.
Anna Holzscheiter, Jonathan Josefsson, Bengt Sandin
School holidays can be stressful periods for children from low-income families. Poor provision of appropriate childcare, limited access to enrichment activities, and food insecurity mean that children's health and well-being can suffer and their learning stagnate or decline. This article examines and documents the evidence that has emerged on this topic and aims to raise its profile and the impact on children's lives. It makes the case for further academic scrutiny of this unexamined and neglected subject.
This article explores children’s resistance in relation to the climate emergency through a thematic analysis of climate activist Greta Thunberg’s speeches. Two themes, new to the literature, are identified: (1) need for political and social change focusing on the climate emergency, resistance towards laissez-faire behaviour and exhortations, and (2) resistance targets including the political leaders, capitalist ideologies and older generations. This illustrates the power of children in expressing abstract progressive resistance.
This article revisits the concept and practice of tokenism in collective child participation, querying whether it is accurate to describe it as ‘non-participation’ and assessing the extent to which it may offer a useful and sometimes necessary step on the journey to more respectful and meaningful engagement with children. It concludes by reflecting on the quality of the feedback given to children and the role that improved feedback might play in addressing the challenge of tokenism.
It is with deep sadness that we mark the passing of Dame Esther Rantzen — a pioneering journalist, broadcaster and tireless champion for children — whose vision and determination helped shape the landscape of child protection not just in the United Kingdom, but around the world. As the founder of Childline UK, she gave voice to the voiceless and created a safe space for children to be heard — often for the first time. Her efforts to break the silence around child abuse and neglect transformed public awareness and policy, and most importantly, saved countless young lives. Dame Esther’s legacy, her extraordinary empathy and unwavering resolve, are woven into the very fabric of our global child helpline movement. Through her advocacy, storytelling, and commitment to listening to children, Dame Esther helped foster a world where help is always within reach. Under her guidance and inspiration, Childline UK – one of the founding members of Child Helpline International – became one of the most trusted resources for children in distress. Her work laid the foundation for the establishment of many other child helplines globally, and her example continues to motivate and guide our network of child helpline members across continents. At Child Helpline International, we have long admired and celebrated Dame Esther’s work and her extraordinary commitment to ensuring that no child feels alone or unheard. Her voice, her courage and her fierce advocacy leave a lasting legacy that will continue to guide and inspire us in our mission to support and empower children everywhere. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Dame Esther’s family, loved ones, colleagues and the countless people whose lives were changed because of her compassion and dedication. Her light endures in every call answered and every child protected. Photo: Number 10 / CC BY 2.0. The post In Memory of Esther Rantzen: A Tireless Advocate for Children’s Rights appeared first on Child Helpline International.
Abstract This naturalistic study researched online help‐seeking conversations between children and young people (CYP) experiencing emotional abuse and/or neglect and their peers. We believe this is the first study internationally to perform such research. Engagement with anonymous, online communities potentially offer children a source of knowledge and a platform to express and understand their experiences with peers on their own terms, using their own words. This study, co‐produced with 10 young co‐researchers (YCoR) (aged 14–18 years), aimed to explore the experiences, psychological characteristics and interactions of CYP engaging with an online peer‐peer message board service to explore theoretical and methodological approaches to examine such ‘real world’ data and inform service evaluation. Incorporating contextualised interpretations by the YCoR, a phenomenological approach explored how the experiences of abuse were constructed and questioned by CYP in online texts, and what motivates help‐seeking. Findings detail the context of CYPs emotionally abusive or neglectful experiences, their language, disclosed mental health challenges, explicit and inferred help‐seeking motivations. The co‐produced methodology facilitated a nuanced interpretation of CYPs' experiences to convey the impacts of emotional abuse and neglect disclosed in this anonymous environment. Validation with YCoR with diverse experiences would facilitate further translation of findings.
Abstract Including statistical models in assessment of referrals about children at risk holds promising aspects. This article presents results from an empirical pilot study developing and testing a statistical decision support system in the form of a predictive risk model.The study involved mixed methods and included 208 referrals assessed by 13 social workers in two municipalities in Denmark. The research design involved comparing risk scores provided by the social workers before and after they received a score generated by the model. Social workers' perception of the model was studied through qualitative interviews before, during and after the test. The quantitative results of the study show that presenting a statistical risk score to social workers only marginally changes their initial assessment of a referral. In contrast, the qualitative findings appeared to show that social workers are ready to include statistics in the decision‐making process, but that some elements need to be considered. These include the definition of risk being used and the linking of this definition with the available data as well as the needs of the social workers. It is important to remember that a statistical model can support – not define – the assessment. Statistical decision support systems based on predictive risk models might prove rewarding in providing more accurate and homogeneous assessments in child protection. Important issues to consider when developing a model are the definition of risk, the data available to the model and communication of the risk calculated. Risk assessments are based on uncertainties and while statistics might limit the uncertainty, data do not eliminate ambiguity of risk assessment. Social workers should engage in the development of statistical tools, but it is important to acknowledge that decisions should always be made by the professional, not the model.
In this paper, we report findings from a qualitative, multidisciplinary analysis of 20 Child Practice Reviews (CPRs) (previously Serious Case Review) in Wales. The reviews were analysed from three different disciplinary perspectives: law, criminology and practice (social work). The following cross‐cutting themes were identified from our coding of the reviews: (i) hierarchy of knowledge, where certain sources of knowledge were privileged over others; (ii) information sharing/recording, where deficiencies of sharing or recording of information were evident; (iii) partial assessment, where certain assessments were not always holistic; and lastly, (iv) voice of the child, where the experience or perspective of the child was not always considered. In addition, our analysis revealed a range of challenges to the CPR process as implemented. This paper is the first to explore themes emerging from (Welsh) CPRs and is also the first to do so from a multidisciplinary perspective. We conclude by highlighting the recommendations for practice, such as the need for greater learning pan‐Wales, regular publication of the major themes emerging from CPRs and the need for deposit of CPRs in a central repository to facilitate learning from reviews. ‘Report[s] findings from a qualitative, multidisciplinary analysis of 20 Child Practice Reviews… in Wales’ Key Practitioner Messages There is an urgent need for multidisciplinary training on contemporary data protection requirements as per the General Data Protection Regulation for all safeguarding boards. Creative methods are required to disseminate the messages from Child Practice Reviews more widely. Child Practice Reviews should be deposited and indexed in a central repository to facilitate learning across Wales. Guidance and training for Child Practice Reviews should be revisited, so that the child is repositioned at the centre of the process and the voice of the child is heard.
Alyson Rees, Roxanna Fatemi‐Dehaghani, Tom Slater et al.
Research has highlighted the role of dissociation in understanding the trauma–psychosis relationship. Moreover, it has been proposed that the association between trauma and psychotic symptoms may be both directly and indirectly explained by dissociative processes. The current study sought to investigate the relationship between age at first sexual trauma, dissociative experiences and psychotic‐like experiences (PLEs) in 269 female trauma survivors (overall mean age = 32.11, SD = 10.55). Mediation analyses were employed to estimate the direct effects of childhood sexual abuse (CSA; mean age at abuse onset = 6.53, SD = 3.98) and adult sexual assault (ASA; mean age at abuse onset = 18.72, SD = 2.59) on PLEs, and the indirect effects via the three subscales of absorption, depersonalisation and amnesia. The findings showed that the CSA group was significantly associated with each of the three dissociation variables (p < 0.01 for each variable), while the ASA group was significantly associated with absorption and depersonalisation (p < 0.01 for each variable). Depersonalisation partially mediated the effect between CSA and PLEs, whereas the relationship between ASA and PLEs was fully mediated via depersonalisation. The findings are consistent with, and complement, models implicating depersonalisation as a unique mechanism in the pathways between sexually based victimisation and PLEs. Key Practitioner Messages CSA and ASA have both direct and indirect impacts on later psychological symptoms. Elucidating mechanisms by which sexual trauma leads to the transition to PLEs should be instrumental in treatment formulation. Depersonalisation is a complementary mechanism in the link between sexually based trauma and PLEs. Evaluating dysfunctional metacognitive beliefs is crucial for therapeutic intervention as these may contribute to the development and maintenance of symptoms. ‘Investigate[s] the relationship between age at first sexual trauma, dissociative experiences and psychotic‐like experiences… in 269 female trauma survivors’
